Orlando Magic considering unusual lineup experiment for this season?
Jun 24, 2022; Orlando, Florida, USA; Orlando Magic first overall draft pick Paolo Banchero speaks during a press conference at the Amway Center. Mandatory Credit: Nathan Ray Seebeck-USA TODAY Sports
The Orlando Magic could be cooking up something unusual for the coming season.
Magic center Wendell Carter Jr. revealed to reporters at training camp on Friday that the team has experimented with a frontcourt trio of him, Bol Bol, and No. 1 overall pick Paolo Banchero. Carter added that head coach Jamahl Mosley envisions the trio playing positionless basketball and sees Bol as the best shooter of them.
Wendell Carter says they tried out a frontline of Paolo Banchero, Bol Bol and Carter in today's practice.
Added that coach Mosley has emphasized they can all be positionless and that Bol's the best shooter among the bigs. pic.twitter.com/cCFdvkqzbR
— Khobi Price (@khobi_price) September 30, 2022
The idea may just be crazy enough to work. Carter plays significant minutes at center but is undersized at 6-foot-10. But he is light enough on his feet to defend the perimeter, which is a skillset that would pair nicely with that of Bol. Standing 7-foot-2, Bol is a bit less nimble outside of the paint but hits his three-pointers at 37.8 percent career rate.
The Cleveland Cavaliers already found success last season with their Lauri Markkanen-Evan Mobley-Jarrett Allen frontline. If Orlando can fit the 19-year-old Banchero into the puzzle as well, they could create something similar. That should not be too hard either considering what we heard recently about Banchero’s insane measurements.
